“If I have seen farther, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." -- Sir Isaac Newton
At Simply Charly, we truly believe in these words, spoken by one of the distinguished personalities we feature on our site. The greatest scientist of his era, Newton is credited with discovering gravity, but his work was built on foundations laid by other great physicists and mathematicians– Aristotle and Galileo among them.
In fact, even though the accomplishments of the historic personalities profiled in these pages were groundbreaking in their fields, their work was, to varying degrees, inspired and influenced by “giants” who lived before them.
SIMPLY CHARLY makes it easy and enjoyable to explore the sometimes controversial but always fascinating lives of history’s most notable trailblazers, whose ideas, discoveries, and creations in the fields of the arts, architecture, science, music, literature, philosophy, politics, and economics, have made an indelible mark on the world.
Our approach to learning is based on "The Great Man (or Woman) Theory," a notion spawned in the 19th century by Thomas Carlyle, a Scottish historian, philosopher and author. This theory states that we learn about the world through the achievements of people who made a significant impact on the lives of their contemporaries and generations that followed them.
The late Steve Jobs used this approach several years ago when he returned to Apple and created an ad campaign that likened his company to some of the great singular figures who dared to "Think Different."
Borne out of those ideas, SIMPLY CHARLY is dedicated to some of history’s “great men” (and women) who not only dared to “think different,” but also turned their insights into groundbreaking achievements in their fields. For example, Ernest Hemingway introduced a new style of writing, Karl Marx inspired the most important political movement of the century, Albert Einstein developed the theory of relativity, Elvis Presley revolutionized pop music, and Pablo Picasso helped introduce Cubism to the world of painting.
These pioneers were not merely “one hit wonders” because their work has been influencing our knowledge and ideas in innumerable ways.
How to use SIMPLY CHARLY website:
Navigating SIMPLY CHARLY is, well, simple.
Each site provides an introduction to the featured historic personality. You don’t need to know physics or advanced math to explore SIMPLY EINSTEIN or SIMPLY GÖDEL, and you don’t have to be an English major to click on SIMPLY HEMINGWAY. Important concepts are introduced in terms everyone can understand, and the work of the individual is always presented in relevant context, from Hemingway’s involvement in the Lost Generation group of writers to the state of physics when Einstein wrote his famous early papers.
From the main page, click on SITES on the navbar for an index of all our sites; each, in turn, has its own set of links. All of these “sub-sites” are dedicated to a particular historical figure. Other pages, such as EVENTS and BLOG are more general but no less informative.
After a brief introduction on the front page, which features a whimsical caricature of the subject, readers can go to the “About” page for an informative biography that outlines the individual’s contributions and creations.
Then there are our exclusive interviews with prominent scholars and other experts, who share their knowledge of each personality, often providing little known but always interesting facts about the lives of these famous people. Book reviews, podcasts, and videos provide further insight into each individual.
Do you need further information about our featured personalities? No problem! Our ASK THE EXPERT platform gives you a unique opportunity to pose your question to one of our eminent scholars, authors, and other experts who specialize in a given historical figure.
Take the time to explore each page carefully and come back often – new portals will be added frequently!
The SIMPLY CHARLY site is the brainchild of the online education division of the Carlini Group, a multimedia company founded by musician and entrepreneur Charles Carlini in 1995.
We hope that our site will spark and satisfy your curiosity about the people who shaped our world and revolutionized the lives of many generations.
As Thomas Carlyle put it: "The history of the world is but the biography of great men."
